


suki's lost days

by nights



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Episode: s03e14-15 The Boiling Rock, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I Made Myself Emo, Minor Sokka/Suki, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:14:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25931953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nights/pseuds/nights
Summary: Appa and Suki reunite at the Western Air Temple, long after their last unfortunate meeting.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 70





	suki's lost days

**Author's Note:**

> We never got to see Appa and Suki's reunion, so here it is. I got the idea from a tiktok by @..10zin, and I just had to write a little fic about it.
> 
> I lowkey cried while writing this.

The airship was big, and loud, but Suki didn’t care. She was free, finally. Off that cursed rock, away from the oppressive, humid air, away from that smug warden. Just the thought of him made her lip curl in disgust. She rubbed her temples. It wasn’t worth getting worked up over, now that she’d escaped.

Sokka plopped down next to her where she was seated, on a metal bench in the bridge. He took both of her hands in his, the skin of his hands more calloused than she remembered, but his touch still soft. Suki looked up at him, and the corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled.

“I’ve got you back,” Sokka said, and wrapped an arm around her. “I missed you so much.”

“I missed you, too.” She tucked her head into his shoulder. The weave of his stolen guard’s uniform wasn’t much softer than her prisoner’s garb.

They held each other quietly, listening to each other’s breathing. It was a balm on Suki’s nerves. Now that it was all over, now that she could let her guard down for one moment, Suki could finally feel the stress of her sentence. She’d been running on stress and adrenaline, alone among firebenders with little to lose, loomed over by guards that thought her a second-class human. She hadn’t realized until now how hard it had been on her, how fragile her nerves had gotten…

Suki squeezed her eyes shut and hid her face against Sokka’s shirt, the tears coming in quiet shudders. Sokka held her tighter, clasping her to his chest, petting her hair worriedly.

“Suki, what’s wrong? What is it?”

The tears were hot on her cheeks, and she sniffed, trying to stop the shaking, at the very least.

“It’s okay, I’m just…” She sniffed again, but the tears just worse the minute she opened her mouth to try to talk about it. “Just hold me.”

“Okay, yeah, I can do that.”

And he did, and Suki sobbed quietly into his shirt until she was spent. She looked up at Sokka, eyes swollen.

“Hey,” Sokka said softly, cupping a hand to her cheek. “You okay?”

Suki choked out a sad little chuckle, garbled around her tears and congested nose.

“Yeah, I’m okay. I’m… I’m really tired.”

Sokka hummed, and Suki sighed.

“I think it just hit me, how long I’d been in there,” she explained, wiping her nose. She’d left a wet spot on his shirt. “I’m fine, I’ll be fine. Just sucked to be there alone, without the rest of the Warriors.”

“I’m sorry.” Sokka’s brows furrowed. “I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner. I shouldn’t have left you there for so long. I’m so sorry…”

Suki shook her head. “You’re not the one who threw me in there, Sokka, and you didn’t even know where I was. I don’t need you to apologize.” He didn’t look like he believed her. “You’re here now, that’s all that matters. I have you now.”

Sokka just nodded.

“Where are we going, again?” Suki wanted to change the subject. The more the thought about it, the more she wanted to start crying again, and she was too tired for that. “You said you guys were holed up at an Air Temple?”

“The Western Air Temple. We went there after the invasion, to recuperate. That’s where Zuko found us.”

“He’s gotten pretty good at finding you.”

“Hey! We’re not that — whatever. I guess it doesn’t matter, now that he’s on our side.”

“Yeah. How did _that_ go down?”

“Not well, at first.”

The airship ride was shorter than expected. The hulking ships looked slow, but once they picked up speed they could really travel quickly. Before she knew it, they were sinking into a broad chasm, and then there it was — the Western Air Temple.

Suki had never seen anything like it — buildings carved into the mountain, hanging upside down, parts of the structures crumbling and overgrown with moss and vines. She worried that it would all come crashing down if they landed, but they did, and it didn’t, and then Sokka was pulling her to the landing bay, hand gripping hers tightly, but she held back for a moment, glancing at Hakoda. He smiled at her gently.

The doors opened, and Sokka and Zuko stepped off, greeting their friends.

She heard Katara’s voice. “What are you doing in this thing? What happened to the war balloon?”

“It kinda got destroyed,” Zuko quipped.

“Sounds like a crazy fishing trip.” Suki recognized Aang’s voice. _Fishing trip? Is that what they told the rest of them they were doing?_

“Did you at least get some good meat?” _Toph always did cut right to the chase._

“I did, the best meat of all — the meat of friendship, and fatherhood.”

Suki rolled her eyes. _Cornball._ She followed alongside Hakoda, stepping down the gangplank. It warmed Suki’s chest to see their familiar faces. She’d missed her friends.

She heard Chit Sang follow behind them, introducing himself, “I’m new. What’s up everybody?”

“Dad,” Katara said, eyes watering.

“Hi, Katara.” Hakoda wrapped her up in a hug, holding her tight.

Katara looked between her brother and her father, eyes wide and incredulous, “How are you here? What is going on? Where did you go?”

“We… kind of went to a Fire Nation prison,” Sokka explained.

Before he had a chance to say anymore, Hakoda had pulled him in. It made Suki’s eyes tear up, just a little, to see them all reunited. She knew how much it meant to Sokka to have his family whole again.

“Seriously, you guys didn’t find _any_ meat?” Toph complained.

Suki watched Sokka hold his father close. She drifted toward Aang; she figured she’d let Sokka have a moment alone with his family.

“Suki! I can’t believe you’re here,” Aang said, giving her a hug. “You’ll have to tell me all about your prison break.” He was grinning, eyes lit up in excitement.

He always brought a smile to her face. “I promise I will. Maybe over dinner?”

“Ah, I can’t wait. We’re having rice and fish tonight —” Aang’s face twisted for a moment, “Like usual. And I can really only eat the rice… but it doesn’t matter. Tonight you and Sokka and Zuko will have a crazy story to tell!”

Aang ran over to Sokka and Katara, pressing Sokka with more questions. Suki felt a laugh bubble in her chest — the first one in a long time.

Suki hear a familiar rumble and turned, and there was Appa, grumbling at the commotion. She took a step forward, glad to see the fluffy bison again, but then Appa’s eyes widened and she hesitated, remembering how they last parted.

_Fire, and pain. I scared him…_

She stood still, and Appa did, too, eyes watching her carefully. Suki’s stomach twisted again, the memory of that day fresh all over again.

 _I failed them, my Warriors. We were captured…_ The thoughts were the same ones that had been running through her head, round and round, her whole time in prison. She’d had plenty of time to think it over, each slip, each moment that she could have turned the tide of battle, each split-second decision where she chose wrong — _I could have spared them so much suffering, if I’d just stepped out of the way of that blow to my side, if I’d just anticipated Azula’s strike… if I’d beat her, I could have saved Appa so much suffering, too._

Suki knelt and folded her hands in her lap, still looking at Appa. He looked cautious, but his ears flicked forward in interest.

_I could have saved him, too. If only I’d been lighter on my feet… he defended me, and in return I frightened him. I needed to get him to Aang, but… he was so scared, and I just scared him more._

“I’m sorry,” Suki said softly. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to scare you, Appa.” Tears pricked at her eyes again, but this time her voice held steady. “I just wanted to send you back to Aang, and… we _were_ okay, in the end. At least, I am, and I hope the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors are.”

Appa rumbled, ears flopping down, and moved closer, slowly, hesitantly.

“I’m so glad you found him. You were so hurt… I’m sorry I couldn’t do more.”

The great bison lumbered over to her, to rest in front of her knees and press his nose close to her hands. She touched his nose, gently, and Appa’s eyes closed with another rumble.

“I know it was hard. I was scared, too… they put me in chains. I always knew I’d fight my way out, eventually, but.” Appa looked at her, and she knows he’s listening. “But, they threatened my friends, they almost burned me…” She was choking up again. “I never thought I’d ever be afraid like that. I hated it. Unarmed, chained… I couldn’t do anything to defend myself… I just had to hope, and survive.”

Appa grunted, prodding her hand gently with his nose. _He knows._

“But, they won’t hurt us again. We’re all back together, now.”

A tear edged its way down Suki’s cheek, and Appa gave her face a lick, his tongue leaving a wet stripe across her face. She laughed, throwing her arms around his snout. Her hands sunk into his fur, fingers brushing through the soft undercoat.

“We’re all back together now. It’s gonna be okay,” she said, more to herself than anyone else.

She knew Appa would tell her that, too, if he could.


End file.
